Icknield Way Morris Men as Stanton Harcourt at The Manor for the Millenium Celebrations
The dances and tunes as listed in A Handbook of Morris Dances
- Greensleeves, Williams MSS
- The Black Joke, Williams MSS
- Bean Planting, Williams MSS
- The Nightingale
- Princess Royal, Williams MSS
- The Nutting Girl, Williams MSS
Sem Seabourne of Icknield Way Morris Men has developed over the years a detailed history of the tradition and notes for twelve dances as performed by the side. Roy Dommett (RD) held instructionals during the 1970’s and his teaching was incorporated into the IWMM’s repertoire at that time by Joe Marns and largely remains that way. There have been developments in the hand clapping, variations to the Black Joke interpretation and stamping during some of the sticking seems to have developed naturally. The notes are available in pdf format here > The Morris in Stanton Harcourt or from Icknield Way's on-line shop
Percy Manning (MSS); Arthur Williams (MSS) - both via RD. The information from both sources is somewhat sketchy, and the following is RD's interpretation. The music was by pipe and tabor.
The dances were discovered by Thomas Carter who reported them to the Oxfordshire folklorist Percy Manning after interviewing one of the old Stanton Harcourt dancers, Joseph Goodlake (1836 - 1901) when he was 63. Further information comes from a manuscript believed to have been written by Juliet Williams, a friend of the collector Clive Carey, although the source for this material is unknown.
Joseph Goodlake was one of 14 children born to Sutton publican George Goodlake, and his brothers were possibly fellow dancers. The main Stanton Harcourt 'man of the morris' however, was John Potter (1813 - 1892) who played the pipe & tabor (also fiddle) for the morris all over Oxfordshire. Potter was also a resident of Sutton and his skill with the pipe was legendary. ("He could almost make un speak!"). He is buried in the churchyard of St. Michael.
Icknield Way Morris Men are keepers of the tradition and sometimes dance out as Stanton Harcourt Morris
